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BEST PRACTICES IN LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT AND ORGANIZATION CHANGE
Exhibit 13.7: Session Follow-up Questionnaire 328
Exhibit 13.8: Training Content: Exercises Used
in Organizational Learning Sessions 329
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTORS 333
OVERVIEW
This case study describes the steps that the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s
Department of Facilities is undertaking to transform into a self-perpetuating learn-
ing organization. The overarching goal is to create an organization that constructs,
operates, serves, and maintains physical space in ways that enhance MIT’s mis-
sion to advance knowledge and educate students in science, technology, and other
areas of scholarship. Also it is a story about a leader’s vision and courage to build
a leader-full organization and bring together customers and representatives from
every corner and level of the department to set its strategic direction.
DIAGNOSIS AND ASSESSMENT OF NEEDS
Most journeys begin with a single step; however, this journey began with two
questions: Where’s the plan, and what are people talking about? In July 1993,
Victoria Sirianni became head of MIT’s Department of Facilities. Her first act of
official business was to review the department’s strategic plan; however, there
wasn’t one. Also, during her visits from functional unit to functional unit she
learned that there were some very unhappy people; more unhappy people than
she expected. Prior to accepting the position of chief facilities officer, Vicky,
as she prefers to be called, had been employed by the Department of Facilities
for twenty years and worked in several capacities within the discipline of space
planning. Nevertheless, her finding surprised her. Her new goal was to find the
answers to these two questions and do something about them. Thus began
the transformation of MIT’s single largest administrative department.
Soon after Vicky accepted her new position, but unknown to her at the time,
the Institute was beginning to launch business process reengineering efforts in
several main operational areas as a means to simplify convoluted work

The word was sent out asking for people to come forward to participate
in writing the plan. Fifty volunteers were distributed into one of four focus
groups: communications; empowerment and accountability; leadership, man-
agement, and fairness; and recognition. Each team included a mix of unionized
service staff, administrators, architects, engineers, computer experts, adminis-
trative assistants, and maintenance, grounds, and custodial service supervisors.
The goal was to make each focus group as cross-functional as possible. Each
group was charged with analyzing the survey responses and determining the
strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and challenges for the particular focus
area and to recommend concrete action items. All of the work was compiled
into one document and the strategic plan was published and distributed to all
members of the department in December 1994.
As one of the outcomes of the strategic plan was the desire and necessity for
more training, Facilities launched three departmentwide training efforts: com-
munications, teamwork, and diversity. Also, Facilities built a mechanism to
ensure linkage between learning and performance and worked with human
resources to determine competencies for each job classification. It was at this
stage that Laura restructured Facilities’ training department to focus on learning
and performance.
The Strategic Leadership Team (SLT) was formed soon after the creation of
the strategic plan and was a collective of several formal leaders but mostly
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informal leaders. The SLT comprised a diverse group of people from all walks
of department life and several customers who came together to express their
frustrations and ideas about current practices and the future of the Department
of Facilities. The SLT also acted as an advisor to Vicky and her directors and as
a sounding board for new ideas. Members of the SLT operated under two rules:
keep a departmentwide strategic focus and maintain the spirit of the original

accounting, administration, systems engineering, and infrastructure—where
each service area is led by a director. From 1998 to summer 2002, three standing
teams supported Vicky, the directors, the operational leadership team, and the
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MIT
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strategic leadership team. The operational leadership team has transformed over
time and consists now of functional unit managers; it provides a forum for the
managers to discuss operational issues that have an impact on all units and to
update each other on current and upcoming activities. The strategic leadership
team has transformed as well, and Vicky and the directors have adopted its
format, investigatory function, and team-based leadership model.
Over the course of time, Facilities employees experienced the value of teams
first-hand; therefore, individual teams would be formed for specific purposes
and in many cases without formal permission. These ad hoc teams, whether
official or unofficial, became a breeding ground for informal leaders and a tool
used by informal leaders to advance an idea. Informal leaders came from all pay
categories. They were supervisors, managers, unionized service staff, adminis-
trative assistants, support staff, and even directors. In many cases, teams have
made departmental decisions and developed and implemented major processes.
This practice created an environment of openness and enabled cross-functional
discussions to help individuals understand that most issues were important to
all, not just to an individual’s service area.
The Facilities division maintains an open environment that can constantly
refresh itself. Facilities employees understand change and the need to develop
a culture that reflects upon itself and continues to enhance the lives of its teams,
leaders, and individuals. Formal and informal teams exhibit much pride, engage
their members, and produce high-quality work. Teams are the place where
Facilities looks for emerging leaders.
INTERVENTION

Program Design Stage
The strategic goals and priorities that were developed and introduced by the
operational leadership team encompassed the following:
• Improve customer service
• Enhance and protect MIT’s assets
• Design, build, and deliver on the capital projects
• Continuous improvement in core processes
• Meet MIT’s commitment to the environment
• Develop individual and organizational capabilities
Dr. Zulauf, working very closely with two of the key people from the Depart-
ment of Facilities, focused on two subsets within the “develop individual and
organizational capabilities” strategic goal: (1) develop, adopt, and implement
new HR practices and (2) renew learning and performance effort.
When the consulting partner first started to envision the interventions for
this project, using these strategic goals and priorities as her driving force, she
had as her overall framework the organizational and individual capabilities as
defined by the Balanced Scorecard, developed by Dave Ulrich and others in
Results-Based Leadership. This framework included, from the organizational per-
spective, considering the capabilities for learning and innovation, working
toward “boundary-less-ness,” or in the language of the Department of Facilities,
working cross-functionally, and building in accountability. The employee
perspective encompasses increasing performance by developing and leveraging
employee capabilities and intellectual capital. The results, over time, would
include new best practices within Facilities and a positive impact on Facilities’
internal and external customer base.
With the focus on developing organizational and employee capabilities as
the overall framework for designing the initial learning and performance
initiative, the consulting partner then took this overall framework to the level
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